Saturday, September 20, 2008

Skype with a USB headset!

There are many ways to use Skype: headset, headphones and internal mic, bluetooth headset and Skype phone. The headphones and internal mic is great because it makes Skype available to everyone. It is not the best configuration however. The problem is that even though Skype has separate settings for Ringing and Audio Output, there is no way to set headphones and internal speakers as separate audio outputs. Using any of the other options solves this problem because it is recognized as a separate audio input/output. The USB headset is what works best for me. I don't why, but the sound quality of bluetooth is terrible compared to how bluetooth works with my iPhone.

I've been wanting to download Skype for Mac, but have read that the latest version 2.7, has issues. Was thinking of finding 2.6 version download, instead. Y'all sound Skype-smart, any suggestions or counsel as to how I might proceed, in the matter? I am looking to connect, in particular, w/a friend running Skype on a PC.

I just started using SkypeIn (calling to landlines and cell phones) from my Intel Mac and it works great with Skype 2.7. After reading this post, I'm definitely going to a) download the SoundForge app and buy a USB Skype phone. I don't mind being tethered, because working with VoIP is iffy enough. I don't need to bring in wireless interference and poor quality too.

As far as Skype phone adapter is concerned, the software it requires called SKYPEMATE doesn't work with Intel Macs and Leopard. I have spent several hours changing configurations but it keeps crashing. It also crashed on Tiger (Intel) but only few times a day. On Leopard, it crashes within a min of starting. Also keep in mind the software is a PPC binary. And I don't think Yealink has any plans of putting out a universal binary. So please think twice before you purchase a Skype phone adapter.